And the older ladies make up a huge chunk of the voting public - I never vote but my mum does (and she does not like Peter - she's an Anita fan already)

As has been pointed out by many others who know dancing way better than me. The answer to the above is "not really"

[quote]

Originally Posted by jiroos:
“Welcome cate!

Sorry - but I'm not going to call you "daft". And forget the fact that this is only your fourth post - as you talk more sense here than some have in 1000 posts!!! I wanted to ask EXACTLY the same question as BIB. If he is the best dancer, he is the best dancer - END OF!”

Thank you, you are kind. Like you, I just want to see everyone given a fair crack of the whip....ooh that's sounds a bit naughty!! I do like Peter. I have met him, and found him to be delightful. He and Emily - she is stunning - were kind to me when I was struggling at an airport. I am quite long in the tooth, and consider myself to be a good judge of character. He must be heartily sick of still being judged because of his first marriage, especially now that he has re-married. Dear God, if people had judged me for my first marriage and the things I did "for lurve" back in the day, I would have no friends today!

However, I agree with you that he probably won't win, but I am secretly hoping he does.

I really like Peter Andre. He comes across as a really sweet man, and the fact that he's had to put up with years of abuse from that awful woman he mistakenly married endears me to him even more.
I'm quite prepared to see what else he can do on the dance floor as the weeks go by but that was NOT a cha-cha-cha that he did on Saturday.
The only person in the whole debarcle that I don't blame, though, is Peter.
1.The choreography by Janette didn't give him a chance to show whether or not he could do basic cha cha cha steps.
2. The judges made no mention of the fact that it wasn't a cha cha cha and just (over-) marked them on the spectacle of it, while undermarking Jay & Aliona by comparison when they did a proper cha cha cha with well executed basics.
3. The producers - do they have some kind of agenda for keeping Peter Andre up the top of the leaderboard so there's no danger of him being voted out too soon?

cate, although I appreciate your lovely words, I do not call it kindness. It is more fairness. I can't abide when someone condemns another just because they can. I get that all celebrities are fair game due to the public nature of their jobs but that doesn't condone outright bias. And who IS perfect? As the Bible says, "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone"

Lovely little story about your encounter with Peter & Emily. At least you are talking from personal experience unlike the great number who simply sit behind a computer spouting endless vitriol about someone they don't even know.

So long as he deserves it, I'm more than happy with a Peter victory - especially just to see this forum go into overdrive!!!

I came to this years Strictly not liking Peter much but I really enjoyed his first dance. He brought energy and a charisma to it I wasn't expecting.

I'll be straight up with you, I really don't like Peter, but I have to say I think this post is spot on, particularly the bolded bit.
1. Janette is entirely to blame for the choreography. If she honestly doesn't know how to choreograph a cha-cha, why not ask someone who does? Or did she try to teach Peter some basic cha-cha steps, realise he couldn't master them, so cobbled together the dance they did on Saturday and hoped that his stage experience meant he could sell it well enough to get by?

2. The judges do this every season. They all waffle on about learning the right steps and decent technique, then go bananas for some flashy but well-presented nonsense that bears no resemblance to the dance it's meant to be.
( And personally I think that Jay should have got Peter's score and vice versa ).

3. I think you may be on to something. They probably paid a fortune to get him on the show and for some unknown reason keep telling us he is this year's biggest star. He seems to be micromanaged by whatshername to the nth degree. It genuinely wouldn't surprise me if his contract contained the clause " Thou must be shiny and lovely to Peter at all times, or you will face the wrath of CAN".

I agree but I did like his routine on Saturday.

It's a bit early in the competition to be looking for a culprit as to why Peter won't win. At least wait until there's actual voting going on.

His odds are drifting and helen is closing in on him. I think to be fair it'll be a longer priced fave to win. Anita and katie are more engaging IMHO.

I can't read the title of this thread without thinking of Willkommen in Cabaret.

"You know the funny thing about Herman? There's nothing funny about Herman."

"What's so good about Peter? There's nothing good about Peter."

Not necessarily saying it's true (not a fan so can't think of an example), but the song keeps playing in my head!

the old ladies round here don't seem to like him either.

Well it's not going to be Peter's fault whatever happens. Probably best to start getting the excuses in nice and early.

What excuses could anyone make? Maybe I might like to see him win but if he doesn't it's no big deal in the grand scheme of things.

I consider myself to be an honest and fair person, if, as the contest progresses it turns out he isn't the best dancer I will have no qualms in admitting it.

If the people he is up against are better than him and more deserving of winning then that's fair enough as far as I'm concerned.

I've already said a couple of times I don't think he will win anyway.

I do wonder what Peter's story (for want of a better word) is going to be on Strictly. So far, Jay has his nerves and the journey, Jeremy loves his kids, Daniel has the massive fan base, Anita is the dark horse, Iwan has a busy workload. Anthony has a far more engaging personality.

On Saturday, Peter did what was expected really and performed his disco latin well. Maybe his angle is going to be the dancing. He might come across all the better for it.